


tricked the machine

by blackkat



Series: Horoscope Drabbles [16]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Adventurer Minato, Alternate Universe - Steampunk, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-02
Updated: 2019-01-02
Packaged: 2019-10-02 21:53:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17271803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blackkat/pseuds/blackkat
Summary: Minato pauses, looking from the redheaded man to the darkness around them. “Whatishere, then?” he asks, because he’s only just reached the city and managed to climb up, hasn’t even spoken to the occupants yet. He’d planned to wait until he could blend in a little better, but—he might have underestimated their level of secrecy.He’s apparently surprised the other man, too, because he hesitates, purple eyes flickering from Minato to the red darkness. “Ghosts,” he says softly, and looks back to hold Minato's gaze. “This was a beast of war, once. There are still souls trapped in the gears.”





	tricked the machine

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by Normal Horoscopes on Tumblr:
> 
> Cancer: A city built into the guts of a colossal war machine now rusted and dormant.

“You shouldn’t be here.”

Startled, Minato turns. Looks, half-blinded by the rust-red darkness, but this section of the old war machine is crowded, strung with scaffolding and stairs and corridors meeting. He can't pick out any shapes in the gloom, and the only light is two levels up and flickering softly.

“There's nothing here,” he says, not an accusation but an observation.

Somewhere above him, there's an indrawn breath, and on a catwalk crossing the ceiling like one strand of a metal spiderweb, a figure moves. Tips forward, over the edge, and falls with perfect awareness of the city, twisting around a strut, catching himself on a rusted gear, and dropping to land lightly on the floor just a handful of feet from Minato.

“You mean,” he says, edged with sharpness as he comes to his feet, “that you haven’t _seen_ anything down here yet.”

Minato pauses, looking from the redheaded man to the darkness around them. “What _is_ here, then?” he asks, because he’s only just reached the city and managed to climb up, hasn’t even spoken to the occupants yet. He’d planned to wait until he could blend in a little better, but—he might have underestimated their level of secrecy.

He’s apparently surprised the other man, too, because he hesitates, purple eyes flickering from Minato to the red darkness. “Ghosts,” he says softly, and looks back to hold Minato's gaze. “This was a beast of war, once. There are still souls trapped in the gears.”

Minato prides himself on being a scientific man, on not indulging superstitions, but at those words coldness prickles down his spine, curls across his nape like the weight of hostile eyes. “Oh,” he says, a little unsteady, and the man steps closer, watching him carefully.

“You're not one of ours,” he says, and the possessive is a strange thing, faintly wrong to Minato's ears. “What are you doing here?”

Caught, and barely an hour into his exploration, too. Kushina's never going to let him live this down. Minato smiles sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head, and admits, “I'm Minato Namikaze, an explorer. I’ve been hearing stories about your city for years, and Kushina finally found it—”

“Kushina,” the man repeats, wary.

“Kushina Uzumaki, captain of the airship Uzushio,” Minato says with a grin, because Kushina is proud of her ship, even if some of the noises it makes in flight leave Minato rather…unsettled. “She told me, and I couldn’t resist trying to find out a little more about you.”

There's a long moment of silence as the man watches him, mouth at a grim slant. Just as Minato is resigning himself to this being another expedition that ends with running and life-threatening, though, he nods, red hair falling over his face to hide his expression. “All right,” he says. “If you want to see the city, I’ll show it to you. But you have to meet our Head Councilor first.”

Excitement ripples through Minato. “You're gong to let me stay?” he asks excitedly. “I get to meet your _leader_? Without getting dragged in front of him in chains?”

The man’s eyes widen, and the he laughs. Softly, warmly, raising a hand to cover it, and Minato grins at that reaction, entirely delighted.

“No chains,” the man promises. “As long as you stick close. I'm Nagato.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Minato says sincerely, making a note of the lack of last name—he wonders if it’s a society without them, or simply Nagato not wanting to give his. The idea of the former is _fascinating_ , honestly. “What do you do here? Are you a guard?”

Nagato pauses, like he wasn’t expecting the question. Then he smiles, just a little, and shakes his head. “I'm Yahiko's sorcerer,” he says simply, and turns, heading up a creaking ramp to a corridor that opens above their heads. The door is sealed, but Nagato simply rests a hand on it and it groans open, revealing a lighted passageway beyond. Turning, he looks down at Minato expectantly, and Minato jolts into motion, hurrying to follow even as his head spins with questions. Some kind of technology that passes as magic, maybe? Has Nagato learned how to use the city’s systems despite it being long-dormant and thinks it’s an arcane power?

Or, just maybe, is this something else entirely?

Minato isn't entirely sure, but he’s more than willing to devote himself to finding out, _especially_ when there's a lack of running and life-threatening.


End file.
